Why I Walk During My Runs & Still Call Myself a Runner!

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

Can You Still Call Yourself a Runner, If You Walk During Your Runs??

By the end of this video, you’ll be totally fine walking during your runs AND still fine calling yourself a runner! 

Walking Has a Bad Reputation… and I’m Here to Change That!

Are you considered ‘a real runner’ if you walk during your runs? For some reason, walking has a bad reputation for those who want to be ‘runners’. I’ve known people who actually stop their Garmin watches when they take walk breaks. I’ve also known people who say they label people who walk, ‘not real runners.’ But, you know what??? Excuse my french, but that’s bull%&*!!  

First of all, I’m not going to win the race, okay? So, for me, personally, it really doesn’t matter when I get to the finish line, if I have no goals to have a personal record at a race. I’m not going to win the race or get a special medal for not walking, so honestly it’s just an easy decision for me. Now, unless I’m trying to have a personal record at an event, or I am running a race for speed, which is a whole different situation. 

But honestly, who cares if I walk or if I’m running? It doesn’t matter! It doesn’t matter, so just get that out of your head right now and know that it’s totally okay to walk sometimes. Sure, I might get there a little faster if I run (lol or maybe not!), but it really doesn’t matter in the long run. Actually,  there’s a method called ‘The Galloway Method’ that is called ‘a run/walk system’ and I absolutely love that system! I do things a little bit differently, but they’re actually planned interval walks in the middle of your run, and you’ll see different types of times that you would do this. So maybe you run for 30 seconds and then you walk for 30 seconds, but they’re basically timed intervals and it’s actually a great way to do a run. I don’t personally use The Galloway Method, because I’m a Chi Runner and a Chi Walker. The way that I go about doing it is I do it strictly by body-sensing. For example, I’ll be in the middle of my run and, if I start thinking that I might want to walk, then what I might do is to go through a couple of form focuses to see if I really need to walk. Maybe I’ll slow my run down just a little bit more, but IF I decide I need to take a walk, then I’ll take a little walk break. I always say you know I stop running when I’m tired or whenever I feel like I need to stop. And then when I feel guilty from walking too long or too far, then I just start running again. In this way, I try to keep those walk breaks short, for sure, but basically, that’s how I do it.  As soon as my heart rate comes back to normal, or as soon as I maybe see the pole that I said I was going to start running again – I’ll do that sometimes… I’ll look ahead and I’ll say, “Okay. I’m going to start running again at that pole,” and so I gave myself a quick break between here and there. 

Another reason why I love putting walk breaks in the middle of my run is just because it feels good! It just feels easier on my body. Running does have a high injury rate (of course, if you’re a Chi Runner or a Chi Walker, your chances of getting injured are going to be way less 😉😁 ), so I just like to include the walking in there. 

I love walking! It feels good to walk, so why would I NOT just choose to walk a little bit in the middle of my runs?? 

Another reason why you might decide to walk (and maybe even walk MORE than running in your runs) is maybe you’re coming back from an injury. Maybe you’re starting back running again. Maybe you’re a beginner runner and it takes a while to get used to that aerobic capacity? So just go ahead and just say that you’re going to walk during your runs. It’s OK! It really is, I swear! Sometimes, planning ahead to walk for a bit really helps me look forward to that little walk that I’m gonna take, so it’s just something that’s  gonna make me feel good. I might be in the middle of my run doing intervals or whatever, and I decide to take little walk breaks. I really just gives me something to look forward to. 

Walking also changes things up a little bit, right? I’m an ultra runner, so honestly, there’s no way that I would run an entire ultra WITHOUT walking part of it! I very rarely even run 5Ks without some walking. It just depends on what works for you, but, for me, taking quick walking breaks breaks up the monotony a bit for me. 

I’m on the trail a lot, so there are definitely times during during my run where, maybe I’m going up a hill, so if I decide that it’s easier for me to Chi Hike really fast up the hill (which might even be literally faster than me running up the hill! lol), I’ll choose to do that instead. It’s definitely necessary to add walk breaks the longer you go! I find that it’s a great way for me to better manage my energy. I don’t want to get to the finish line puking and uncomfortable. I want to get to the finish line feeling super good and still having some energy left, so maybe now I can have that beer at the beer garden. 🍻🍺🍻  

Another great reason is because, when you’re walking, you’re actually building your aerobic capacity! There’s a lot of evidence that shows when you’re in that Zone 2 or Zone 1 in your aerobic capacity, you’ll actually lose more weight, since you burn more body fat that way. Now there are a lot of other things that play into that, so I’m just listing that as one potential reason. Another thing for me is that I do also just like to bring my heart rate down once in a while and walking during a run is a great way for me to do that. 

Honestly, walking just makes you a better runner. It really does! I don’t know why it has such a bad reputation and common misconception that walking is not for runners, but, hey, take it from me……

I’m an ultra runner… I’m a coach… Walking… is totally… OK. 

What To Look For In A Running Shoe

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

My Favorite Running Shoes

Having a good pair of shoes is definitely a great way to make sure that your run is more comfortable and more fun, so there are definitely things that I look for in a shoe. (PLEASE NOTE: I’m going to be a little bit biased 😉 since I am an ambassador for Altra running shoes.) 

One of the best things you can do is to have more than one pair of running shoes. I know that can get expensive but if you think about it, it’s an up front cost. You can wear out one pair of shoes alone quicker than alternating between four pair. In the long run (pun intended), it will save your feet to have more options. I actually always have FOUR pairs of running shoes that I’m running in at any given time: two road shoes and two trail shoes. I also like to have a shoe that’s a little more minimal (I’ll explain that in a little bit) and those are usually for my shorter distances, whether that’s trail or road.

So those are two different shoes. If I’m going on a longer run, then I want to have a little bit more cushion, so I will tend to have a different shoe for a longer run on road or trail again.

Why Altra Running Shoes?

The major reasons I love Altra running shoes: 

  • They allow me to move my body as naturally as possible. 
  • They have a wider toe box that we call Altra FootShape™ technology. What happens is if you look at some at some running shoes they come to a point like a pizza box, right? A triangle! And our feet are not triangles! Unfortunately, the shoe industry has really really caused a lot more running injury issues for people, because they’ve used the shoe to help mask all the problems, which is why people don’t learn technique. So they use shoes to help them, but in the long run that’s not the best thing to do.

Toes in toe box Altra Running Shoes

  • Altra shoes are also specially designed so that your heel and your toe are basically at the same level. (If you watch the video, you can see that the heel and the toe are same distance from the ground.) This is called a Zero Drop. There’s no heel lift, because what happens is when you have a heel lift in your shoe (usually measured in millimeters) it’ll say, you know, “five millimeter heel lift.” Now you’re putting your foot in this position that is not natural, and when you put your foot in this position it’s changing your entire body alignment. 

ZERO DROP™ PLATFORM

  • Altra Running shoes are also very flexible! Your foot should be able to move naturally and, even with Altra models that have a little bit more cushion, you can still see (in the video) that my foot still actually moves with the shoe. They’re not very stiff. If you grab your shoe and it’s very stiff, then they can’t move and you can’t expect your foot to move naturally. 

My Shoe Rotation – My Altra Models 

  • Escalante 

    These are my road shoes for short distance because they do have less cushion. 

  • Torin 

    These have that same wide toe box as other Altra running shoes. Even though here you can see here (in the video) the cushion difference, my heel and my toe are still at the same level. There’s no heel lift in this shoe, so these are my preferred longer distance road shoes. The Torins are one of my favorite road shoes and they also allow my foot to move.

  • SUPERIOR 

    So I’ll start with my most minimal trail shoes. (lol, these are a little dirty! They’ve obviously hit the trail quite a few times!) One of the principles with ChiRunning™ is that we don’t push from our toes to move us forward. All we’re doing is lifting our foot, so we don’t have to push off. I never feel like I’m pushing myself out with my shoes. Everything just stays nice and in place. I use these as my shorter distance trail shoes and you can see here (in the video) that they’ve got these great grips! This is one of the other things I love about the Altra shoes. The grips don’t have so much to do with the mobility of the shoe, but from a trail perspective, these really help out with that. 

  • lONE PEAK

    This is my second of two pairs of trail shoes. Mine are purple – my favorite color. You can see the nice grip on here, so you know when you’re out on the trail, these grips help and there is also a little bit more cushion on these, so these would kind of be a medium cushion shoe for me. 

  • tIMP

    Last, but not least, this is other shoe that I like to wear for longer distances. These are newer to me – I usually wore the Lone Peaks – but I tried these and now I love them! Every time I try a new model, I can’t help it, but these have the most amount of cushion and all have the same qualities that I talked about at the beginning of why I really like these in a shoe. 

That’s why I just love the the Altra running shoes! They help me with my ChiRunning™ and they help me move as naturally as possible.  

The Story Behind My Mascot

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

The Story Behind My Mascot

The Backstory

What in the world does a monkey have to do with running? People alike to ask me  questions about how I came up with my business ideas. So, a couple of years ago I was trying to figure out a mascot for my TRU TRIBE. This is my online community of women. We learn together, grow together and train together. I was trying to come up with something running related. There are so many animals out there in the running world that are really overdone: turtles, snails and sloths to name a few. I really just wanted something different.
One day we were hanging out after a run, surely beer was involved. 😂 We were tossing this idea around and somehow the monkey came up. I started researching what they represented and thought, this is perfect!

The Meaning

Here are some things that really resonated with me:

  • Monkeys are playful, joyful and they love to have fun. One of my taglines is “Put the fun in your run”
  • They can be silly, carefree and they’re very social. Whether we are in person or on zoom (we have members around the county!), we are socializing!
  • Monkeys help us remember not to take life too seriously. This is our philosophy with our running too. Sure we can be serious about it but we mostly do this for fun.
  • They are curious. Remember Curious George? I always encourage them to be curious and encourage them to have first time experiences. This could be their first trail run, night trail run, ultra marathon or anything that will get them out of their comfort zone.
  • Monkeys form strong bonds. While our community is about running, it’s really about connecting with other like minded women. We do this in person and online!
  • They are wise! Remember Raffiki from The Lion King? We learn together, train together and grow together to be the best runners/humans we can be.

This is us!

The History

But wait, there’s more! LOL My nickname in high school was Monkey. My best friend RJ gave it to me at the time. I don’t really remember why but it was one more good reason!
Monkeys also seem to like me. I remember vividly being at a zoo in Italy with my family when I was younger and as soon as I got to the, they started getting all crazy. Like I was one of them and why I was out of the cage? 😂

The Reveal

Finally……DRUMROLL please 🥁 …..(sounds effects are much better in the video!)

and here she is:

If you are interested in checking us out, click here and you may win 3 Free Months with us!

I Gained 20 LBS & What I’m Doing About It

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

I know, I know! Hear me out…..

  1. This is not about how I look at all! As I age, I could care less. I am comfortable in my own skin even with the extra 20 lbs.
  2. No judgement on weight. Everyone is writing their own life and running story, you do you, I’m doing me
  3. It boils down to how my body feels right now
  4. This is my journey!

Since Across The Years at the beginning of this year, I had to stop running for several weeks due to my overuse injury. This turned into a few months of on and off running. I was also eating the same amount of calories that I would eat when I was training (big difference in calorie expenditure when you’re walking/running 40-50 miles a week 🙄).

I know a lot people can relate to this. That extra 10-20 lbs that sneaks up you.

I weighed myself in March and was up about 10 lbs. I knew I had to start thinking about doing something. I set a few goals but wasn’t serious about them so I’d start tracking my food for a few days and let it go. I’d start adding the running back in but wasn’t as motivated until I had to get serious about training for TransRockies. Even though I am not doing the full course, I figured out that to get all the Dawn Patrol people to the first Check Point (and complete the 2 shortest but hardest stages) it would be a 50 mile week.

It wasn’t until the other day when I was bitching about it …AGAIN…that one of my TRU TRIBERS reminded me “You’ve been saying this since January!” (Actually March but I got the message!)

As a personal trainer (and someone who has worked with 3 different nutrionists) I know what I need to do.

So I was out running the other day contemplating this and decided to record a video in the middle of my run.

I’m just putting myself out there because I think it will help others (and selfishly it will motivate me more if know people are following me 😂).

I have a plan and you can join me or follow my progress. :

  • When I get back from TransRockies, I will host an Instagram Live  on Mondays at 5:30pm Phoenix time. It will be 10-15 minutes of me sharing my goals for the upcoming week as well as recapping the week before. This will include updates on my progress and running training (starting to train for Jackass Night Trail Runs with my TRU TRIBE on 8/8)

Hope to inspire and motivate you too!

Your Biggest Cheerleader,
Coach Lisa

2022 Goals & Midyear Review

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

9/2 update August

If you’ve been in my circle for awhile, you know I started this practice a few years ago after reading Atomic Habits. James Clear, the author, does this annually and he inspired me to do the same.  This is my annual “performance” review based on goals that I set for myself at the beginning of 2021 as well as my 2022 goals.

James mentions in his last annual review that’s it’s uncomfortable to “brag” about himself and his business and to be so vulnerable by sharing some uncomfortable information.  I agree but I figure it’s part of my personal growth process and if it inspires others to do the same, then great!  So here it goes!

2022 Goals 
I realized I set way too many goals for myself last year, mainly because I turned 50 so this year I’m scaling back:
    • Start Video Academy Strategy Course live on 2/28/22 and relaunch my You Tube by 8/22 started on 3/2
      • Midyear Review: started dropping videos on 4/4/22 and I’ve released a new video every week since (missed one the week of TransRockies and I’m OK with it)
    • Online Digital Course Bootcamp with Amy Porterfield 9/1
    • Create at least 3 different opt ins for my newsletter by 8/22. When I changed platforms last year, I couldn’t use the same one so I haven’t had one for awhile. These may include ebooks and/or quizzes. As of 6/5, created Monthly Raffle for Video Analysis and TRU TRIBE 3 months free
      • Midyear Review: High on my 3rd Q To Do list
    • Delve in deeper to the Membership Academy. There is a lot of content for membership owners.
      • Midyear review: I’ve used to find specific things I need
    • Continue making the TRU TRIBE my priority. I already have guest speakers lined up through June. I will continue creating good content and courses for them. Not sure yet if I’ll have any goals for increasing membership this year. My ultimate goal (no deadline yet) is to make this 80% of my income. I am taking my time. I am on the Mighty Network Product Council and we looked at my Insights a few weeks ago. Happy to report that they said I have one of the most engaged memberships they’ve seen!
      • Midyear review: working on 2nd half of the year. Will be rolling out the new TRU TRIBE Plus which will replace the Ladies Training Programs.
    • Get efficient at having a monthly and quarterly Content Calendars for both of my businesses for social media and the online communities. I’m getting better at weekly scheduling. My goal is to have this nailed down by 5/22
      • Midyear review: getting better but still not as streamlined as I’d like it to be
    • Deliver 5 speeches in my Toastmaster club by the end of the year
      • Midyear review:
        • 1st one completed 4/7: 20-25 minutes Online Webinar. 2nd one scheduled for 7/21
        • as of 9/2 I’ve done 2
    • Copy this blog post and update it monthly
      • Midyear review: been on top of it
    • Spend more focused time with family:
      • Greg: Monthly Day Date on calendar
        • Midyear review: not as formalized yet. Added to our morning routine though
      • Mom and Dad: see them at least 1x a week
        • Midyear review: have been pretty good with this
    • Meditate daily
      • Since 7/18 (when I started with Insight Timer app), I’ve hit a milestone of 1,000 days with a session in 5/22
      • Reports don’t show midyear but I had 324 sessions in the last 12 months which is 162 for 6 months. Close enough.
    • No running goals this year! I am recovering from an injury and have decided this year I need to spend more time on my businesses (I don’t mention that much here but the ChiRunning business takes up a lot of my time too!). I do have an ultimate goal to do the Cocodona 250 but that will be on the 3-5 year plan. This year I’ll focus on strength training and technique (always!) and then I’ll get back to longer distances in 2023. As of 6/5 I’ve kicked off my 8 week training for TRR to get to 50 miles a week.
      • Midyear review: on track
    • Strength train/Mobility work at least 2x a week with a stretch goal of 3x (starting 3/1 since I’m writing this on 2/25). Need to schedule on calendar for accountability.
      • Midyear review: Been doing it more but not as consistent as I’d like to be yet

 

2022 Personal and Professional Review
  • Running:
    • Live Races:
    • Races Virtual:
    • Random:
  • Travel:
    • February: Rocky Point for my Birthday weekend
    • March: Crown King to support my TRU TRIBE
    • April: Ladies Training Program weekend in Prescott for Whiskey Basin race
    • June: LTP weekend in Flagstaff; Trip to Portland
    • July: LTP in Silverton CO
    • August: Buena Vista to Beaver Creek: TransRockies; Rocky Point with Greg
  • The Running University 
    • Certified ChiRunners/ChiWalkers :
      • Privates: 11+9 new CR/CW, 6 ChiRefreshers with Alumni
      • CRCW workshops:
        • Jan 30 (11)
        • 5/21 (9 mine only)
        • 9/3 – 15 mine
      • Free Clinics:
        • Aravaipa (1st Wed of Jan)
        • 2/27 Sole Sports Tempe with Dr. Emily
        • 3/10 Sole Sports Arcadia for Tri for the Cure packet pickup
        • 3/18 Strive PT
        • 8/24 Sole Sports Tempe
    • TRU TRIBE

2022 Vision Board

My 2022 Vision Board is to the left of me in my office space so I see it constantly.
My phrase of the year is: Embrace My Space. By space I mean: physical, emotional, spiritual, mental…I want to be better about setting boundaries and taking care of me. You can see that a lot of the right side of my vision board is about that. I need to keep working smarter not harder and keep streamlining some of my processes and keep things simple. The top left is about our home space. We’ve been in a one bedroom apartment in Tempe (love the location and we are minimalists so the space works too). Not sure what we will do this year with the economy the way it is but I want to keep a good home space for 2022 which could also mean staying put where we are (I just want my honey to have a good garden space though!). The bottom left is all about my summer plans! I’ll be volunteering at TransRockies (summer camp!) again this year with my besties! Excited to say that we are Dawn Patrol which means taking care of the Back of the Pack group! Last but not least the bottom middle is about spending more time meal planning and cooking. Because of my work load I tend to resort to quick fixes (still mostly healthy ones) but I’d like to make more time for planning and preparing food. Also a good way to spend quality time with Greg 🥰

If you made it this far, thank you for taking the time to read through it! 🥰 This is a time consuming process but well worth it!

ChiWalking Self Video Analysis

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

The video doesn’t lie!

Even though I’ve been teaching ChiRunning/ChiWalking since 2010, reviewing my technique regularly helps me get better. This is my 1st Q 2022 review.

Walking is a great way to get your fitness on. I walk as cross-training and also walk quite a bit during my runs. ChiWalking was a gamechanger for me! Since there is still impact on your joints, walkers are also susceptible to common injuries like plantar fasciitis, knee problems, back pain, etc. In this video, I share a video analysis of me walking “normally” and ChiWalking.

Click here to win a free online gait analysis of your running/walking form

Chi Walking® will help you:

  • improve your posture
  • strengthen crucial core muscles
  • relax tight and overused muscles
  • gain cardio and aerobic conditioning

Whether you are a fitness walker already, want to manage or release weight, are rehabilitating after illness or injury, or have signed up for a walking event and want support, Chi Walking will help you reach your personal goals, including looking and feeling better than ever.

The Chi Walking technique emphasizes the proper biomechanics of walking including: good  posture, loose joints, engaging one’s core muscles, and relaxing the peripheral muscles of the arms and legs. This approach makes walking easier on the body and helps improve and eliminate the aches, pains and discomfort of walking incorrectly.

The Five Mindful Steps are used throughout the book and program to reinforce the body-mind component inherent in each step.

The Chi Walking program offers 12 different types of walks to create a balanced and exciting health program. The “menu” of walks includes: a Cardio Walk, an Aerobic Walk, a Flexibility Walk, a Loosening Walk, a Focusing Walk, an Energizing Walk, a Walking Meditation and more. The walks are presented in the Chi Walking book in a detailed and understandable way, then summarized in an easy to read matrix which shows the key benefits of each walk.

Since walking is such a basic, every day movement, when your walking form is improved, the benefits are far reaching.

Click here to win a free online gait analysis of your running form

To find out more about walking technique visit ChiWalking

Get Your Free ChiWalk-Run Digital Booklet here

My favorite speed (or hill) workout 😁

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

Depending on your running goals, you may find yourself doing speed and hill workouts. Just about every training plan will have these types of workouts. There are definitely many ways to do these. Just google hill or speed workout and you’ll get ideas.  Although I don’t recommend that. I always recommend working with a coach who can you help you become the best runner you can be because they have the knowledge and experience to help you. Any of the free plans you find online are generic and may not fit you, your lifestyle or goals. If you’re not sure if you need a running coach, read this!

This is one of my favorite speed and hill workouts, especially when done with a group. I stole the idea from Danny Dreyer, the founder of ChiRunning. He played it with us one year at an Instructor weekend and I added my own twist:

Please make sure to follow the directions!
Don’t do speed work if you don’t have a base.
Don’t do speedwork if you are not warmed up.
Make sure to cool down as well.

A few extra tips:

  • After your first set, make sure to drop your 2nd Emoji (hopefully not too far from the first one) and then pick up your first one. Every set you will repeat dropping the one in your hand and picking up the one you left on the last set.
  • You can change the timeframes. I usually like to double the recovery time.
  • Depending on your current level, be realistic about how long the intervals are. This one takes a few sets to start feeling your heart rate creep up so make sure to listen to your body and pace yourself!

I hope you enjoy this one!

What do you do with your arms?!

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni
Not too many people talk about arms when discussing running. The assumption is that running is all about your legs. This couldn’t be further than the truth. In ChiRunning we learn the importance of using all of our body to maximize running efficiency.
𝙒𝙝𝙮 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙧𝙪𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙚𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙮 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧?
The more energy you use unnecessarily, the harder you are making it for yourself.
 
𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥:
⭐ Make running easier when you are doing it
⭐ Help you recover quicker so you can do it more often
⭐ Help you get faster
⭐ Help you go longer
In this video I share a few tips that will help you use your arms so you can be more efficient.
 
𝙎𝙤 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙢𝙨 𝙙𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙧𝙪𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜?

ChiRunners VS Runners: What’s the difference?

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

Why are ChiRunners different than other runners?

Since I’m the Community Manager of our Online ChiRunning/ChiWalking Community which is all ChiRunners and ChiWalkers, I definitely see that we have a different mindset than most other runners. Add that to reading some of these posts in running facebook groups and sometimes I can’t help but cringe at some of the questions and advice given there!

Then I remembered that Danny Dreyer, the founder of ChiRunning, had addressed this in the ChiMarathon book.  Here is what he shared on page 11:

The difference between ChiRunners and Runners

In this video I combine a few and add my own spin to them but here it is in a nutshell:

  1. Mind WITH body, not mind OVER body: we don’t push through pain. We are our own body detectives. If we feel pain while running, our body talks to our mind, we reach into our toolbox to figure out why that pain may be happening, and then make adjustments in our technique to help the pain go away. You learn how to listen to your body and body sense.
  2. Intelligent movement vs physical exertion: our goal is to maximize running economy. Yes we do hill repeats, speed workouts etc. But we have a different spin: we try to figure how we can “push” our bodies but without increasing physical effort. How can the movement be more efficient? How can we maximize gravity, balance and relaxation vs powering through?
  3. Conserve energy vs burning it: as mentioned in the last one, this is a priority. Instead of pushing through to go faster or longer, we listen to our bodies, take into account external and internal factors and work from there.
  4. Core strength vs leg strength: we prefer not to use our legs for propulsion. This is a good way to get injured as well as wasting a lot of unnecessary energy. Most runners use their legs to propel forward. We use good postural alignment, which requires core strength, and gravity to help us move forward. When your legs aren’t working so hard, you’re less likely to hurt yourself and running is more effortless because you are not using all the muscle to push you through.
  5. Learn and listen TO our bodies, we don’t test or push: our bodies have the answers. Too many times people push through pain hoping it will go away or they will get over it. I’ve had too many people come to my ChiRunning workshops who have said, “I wish I knew this information before my {insert injury issue/surgery here}. If you are in pain, your body is telling you something. Ignoring it can possibly make it worse.

Who wants to be sidelined with another running injury? Not us!

Who wants running to be exhausting and hard? Not us!

Who wants to feel like crap right after a race or the next day? Not us!

Who wants to keep running in a way that your likelihood of injury is so much lower, where running can be easier and you can have a joyful, sustainable running practice for the rest of your life? That’s us!

Click here to win a free online gait analysis of your running form

To find out more about running technique visit ChiRunning

ChiRunning Self Video Analysis

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

The video doesn’t lie!

Even though I’ve been teaching ChiRunning since 2010, reviewing my technique regularly helps me get better. This is my 1st Q 2022 review. I will be posting these quarterly because practice makes progress.

Background:

I did my first 100 miler over New Year’s on a one mile loop course. While I trained as much as I could, I ended up injuring myself. I had to cancel 3 ultra events that were scheduled after this.

I’ve worked with Jody, my acupuncturist right after the injury. I’ve been focusing on shorter distances, strength training and stretching (not consistently though). I know focusing on that and my technique again will help get me ready for some bigger mileage goals that I have in the next 2-4 years. Gradual progress and patience have been key for me during this time.

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Some of my key takeaways for this quarter:

  • Make strength training a priority minimum 2x a week but goal of 3x
  • Lower leg relaxation more specifically ankles. Will focus on more ankle mobility as well.
  • I continue to work on upper body rotation. It’s better but still some work to do there along with shoulder/upper body relaxation. I love rocking and doing Original Strength work to help with shoulder stabilization.
  • Drop my chin a bit more for a more neutral head position

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To find out more about running technique visit ChiRunning